Gshocker's Toys

D700.. WOW Nikon...

Well everyone knew it was on the way but the official announcement went down and it is just like everyone had hoped. I guess you can call it the mini-D3. A  cross between the D300 and the D3 with the light sucking sensor that the D3 offers this is sure to be a popular model in the Nikon lineup.

The pricepoint at $2999 will fit in quite nicely with the current lineup and offer people a nice range to choose from. I am curious to see which direction people will lean now that this one is out there.. Will it hurt the D300 sales even though it is more money. I can say that when I first read about it I was thinking about selling my d300 so that I can have two sensors sizes that are the same (D3 and D700). but the cost is a bit more than I want to spend when my main body will still be the D3.

One nice thing is that owners of the D300 can use the same battery grip. This will make the D300 / D700 combo a nice setup for someone looking for a backup body. One full frame and one DX sensor gives you some nice options with your lenses.

I would imagine the used shops in Japan will get a flood of used D300 bodies.. and Ebay will see a flood from the US market. Could be a good time to grab up a used D300 body.

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Tags: Camera, Nikon, D700

What is NIkonUSA doing?

Well I was up in Torrance, CA today to grab a second D3. It seems some places are not getting enough and some places have enough to be selling of the shelf. How do some dealers get stock and others get starved waiting for shipments. The forums have been lit up with rumors of what is going on. Seems when anyone hears something it gets posted somewhere on the net.

It will be interesting to see how long it will take before all the waiting lists are gone for the D3. It seems the D300 is available in most stores so Nikon certainly did well with that one compared to the D200 launch. I guess I was lucky to have one 4 days after launch and be able to find a second so soon after. Even thought I am not looking for another D3 I am still keeping an eye on the forums as I am curious to see how this supply chain problem plays out for NIkon.

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Tags: Nikon

Nikon Fun

Was up in LA yesterday for the DV Expo and had a chance to stop by Samys Camera up there on the way back. I was surprised to find that there were lots of manufacturer reps around showing off their goods and answering questions. I figured that this would be the perfect chance to find out about getting a Type E focusing screen for my D3 camera.

Well to my surprise the sales rep for Nikon was less than enthusiastic. In fact it seemed pretty clear that he was not happy to be there talking to the public (if that is what you call what he was doing). When asked about the screen he said no without even looking up. Not well we do not have it yet but we should be getting it in around x date.. or how do you like the D3 etc.. Here I was someone who had just plopped down 5K for one of their cameras and it seemed like I was just anoying him more than anything else. I could rant on for a bit more about how dissapointed I was as the Canon rep was much more friendly as were all the other reps there. The Nikon guy was in his own world fiddling with some little point and shoot model never looking up at people.

Well enough of that.. I did manage to find the type E Screen listed on Yodoboshi Cameras website so I may try and get that ordered and shipped here. May even pickup some of the screen protector films they have in Japan as well.

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Tags: Nikon

Where are they all?

OK.. So maybe I have gone a little crazy about finding a D3. With all the new features and speed I can't wait to get my hands on one of these. It seems that finding one is pretty hit and miss. While there are still lots of people waiting on pre-order lists for these gems some people have walked right in and grabbed one.. WOW!!

Well I managed to find myself one at a store in the midwest. I still have one on order thru Ritz but I think I will be canceling that order as my new D3 should arrive sometime tomorrow.

Food for thought.. If your customers have 5K to spend on your new product wouldn't you want to keep them happy and sell it to them.. It seems according the the forums that Nikon is not letting on as to how many are shipping. This keeps all those waiting guessing as to when their lucky number could come up. It would be nice if NikonUSA would let people know they have X number filled for NPS and X number shipping for the rest of us. At least this would let some people sleep at night knowing that either they are getting it for Christmas or they will be waiting till next year. The dealers certainly do not seem to know..

My next mission will be to find a type E screen for it. That may have to wait till I am in Japan as finding one in the US could be a challenge. I am going to make a few calls tomorrow to see if anyone knows if they are available to even order yet. Well maybe I will have some thoughts on the new camera tomorrow.

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D3 Day in the US

Today is supposed to be D3 day here in the US. The various forums all over the net are lit up with news of I got mine of my store has not gotten any yet.  I do not expect to hear anything about my order till next week but of course I will be watching the forums to see what is going on. Seems like most stores are getting lenses in stock and a few bodies. So far this morning it seems a few non NPS members are getting their toys. By tomorrow we should know a bit more.

The 14-24 is a sweet looking lens. One dealer I talk to has tempted me with this one saying they should have extra of these today. Personally I think it would be great for my Japan trip next summer but the 17-35 that I have should also do the trick. Stores are expecting this one to fly off the shelves as most people using the 12-24DX lens will now need to find something else.

The 24-70 is one lens that does have me tempted. Now that I Had just sold my 28-70 2.8 a few years back and have been using my 17-55 DX lens most of the time. Remove the 1.5 multiplier and this becomes the new 17-55 with a full frame. I am going to be keeping my eye on this one.. I want one for sure.

Nikon D3

Well tomorrow is the day that the Nikon D3 launches in the US. Rumors are all around as to what is going to happen and who will be able to get the top end Pro Digital SLR. As usual NIkon USA is not saying much and they seem to be treating this camera like some prize that only the select few may own. Here are the two general rumors going around.

1. NPS (Nikon Pro Services) members will be getting their cameras. This is basically a fact. It seems that no matter when you ordered it as an NPS member you will be getting whatever you ordered tomorrow. Along with this comes the bad news for non NPS people.. Each store is getting cameras ordered by NPS members along with 1 extra unit. This unit is for demo but as most dealers do not have demo units this will be sold to the first luck person on their waiting list.

2. Same as before all NPS members will be getting their orders filled. Unlike rumor 1 there will be extra units for non NPS people. This would mean that some stores may be able to fill most of the orders that they have waiting. Places like Ritz, Adorama, B&H will certainly get more and may fill all their pre-orders before Christmas.

No matter what rumor end up being true one thing is for sure.. Lots of people want this camera. Nikon's first venture into the Full Frame digital world seems to be the answer many have been looking for.  A nice combo of speed, resolution, features and high ISO ability make this one camera that will be in short supply.

If I beleive the rumors that have more units for non NPS people I should have a D3 sometime early next month. If that happens I will certainly have some comments here. Either way I will post what goes on.

Sony T5 Fashion Camera?

New Sony camera announced that is pretty slick. 5.1 MP images with a very small and fashionable style to it. A nice big 2.5" LCD on the back halps you frame the images. I am sure this uses the memory stick duo cards. Looks to be around $400 in Japan and will be out in September. Not sure if it will be on the way to the US.

Gigapixel?

Head over to the gigapixel project to check out some serious resolution. This thing takes some images that are just amazing. Of course you need to lug this giant camera around so not for everyday use but it is quite an interesting project and certainly worth a look.

Digital Rebel Hacks

This site had some hacks that they say will make your Canon Digital Rebel more like the Canon 10D camera without having to spend the extra cash. This is certainly interesting to see. Who would have thought that hacking would hit the digital camera realm...

New Lens Drool

Finally NIkon has a replacement for the MF 200mm that they had out there for so long. The 200mm MF fast lens was quite popular and has become hard to find out there now. This one would make a great additioin to any collection as I would guess it is a bit smaller than the 300mm f2.8 and hopefully lighter. No price was announced as far as I could find.

Edit - Well I noticed this story about the lens. The price and weight are listed there. Far from cheap and well out of most people's price range for such a specialized lens.